Gold, trading little changed in New York, rebounded from earlier losses after U.S. employers added fewers workers than forecast last month, raising speculation that the Federal Reserve will press on with stimulus efforts.
The 162,000 increase in payrolls last month was the smallest in four months and trailed the median projection of 185,000 in a Bloomberg survey, Labor Department figures showed today. Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said last month that it’s too early to decide whether to begin scaling back debt purchases in September, after saying on June 19 that bond buying could slow if the economy improves.
“The payrolls data leave much to be desired for the economy, and the Fed may not apply the brakes on stimulus just yet,” Adam Klopfenstein, a senior market strategist at Archer Financial Inc. in Chicago, said in a telephone interview. “Investors continue to be very cautious on mixed data signals.”
Gold futures for December delivery rose less than 0.1 percent to $1,311.70 an ounce at 9:27 a.m. on the Comex in New York, after dropping as much as 2.2 percent to $1,282.40, the lowest since July 18.
Trading was 48 percent above the average for the past 100 days for this time of day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Prices dropped 22 percent this year through yesterday after some investors lost faith in the metal as a store of value and amid concern the Fed will reduce its $85 billion in monthly bond purchases. Gold more than doubled from 2008 to a record $1,923.70 in September 2011 as the central bank bought more than $2 trillion of debt.
Silver futures for September delivery jumped 1.5 percent to $19.91 an ounce in New York.
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